This invention relates to a three stage breaker apparatus wherein the apparatus breaks the large particles that are in the slurry from a reactor tank into predetermined particle size to assure that the slurry will pass through the system without clogging it.
Large reactor tanks are used to polymerize vinyl chloride into polyvinyl chloride (PVC) after which the PVC slurry is pumped via suitable pipes for further processing. The reactor tanks have strainer baskets located at the outlet opening for collecting oversized build-up particles or chunks. During the polymerization process certain amounts of PVC build-up occurs on the walls, baffles and agitators of the reactor tanks. Such build-up in the form of lumps is caught by the strainer basket which is then emptied daily, presenting a safety hazard of vinyl chloride gas exposure. Without the use of the strainer baskets, the lumps in the slurry would cause partial clogging or plugging of the lines in the system and eventually would require a close down or interruption in the PVC production. The present invention provides a lump breaker apparatus that eliminates the use of basket strainer and assures non-interruption in the operation due to the lumps being reduced to predetermined size to assure passage through the whole system. The present apparatus is particularly efficient in its operation and require little maintenance. The apparatus provides means for rapid disassembly of parts, quick removal of the stator and rotor members and their resharpening or replacement with a minimum of down time. Prior art apparatus required the removal of the entire housing from the pipe line system before the rotor blades could be removed. With the apparatus of the present invention, the particle size is reduced by a shearing action to a predetermined size and not pulverized. The apparatus of the present invention requires that the particles pass through several combinations of stator plates with their cooperative rotary shear members such that the particles is hit several times by the rotary shear members before it can pass through the system. The apparatus eliminates back pressure by providing a discharge opening that is greater than the inlet opening wherein there is an initial rough breaking followed by two separate or stage shearing actions which reduce the particle size to an acceptable predetermined size.